The young man with his hat slouched over his eyes, stillleaning on the arm of the officer, and still wiping fromtime to time his brow with his handkerchief, was watching ina corner of the Buytenhof, in the shade of the overhangingweather-board of a closed shop, the doings of the infuriatedmob, a spectacle which seemed to draw near its catastrophe.
Indeed," said he to the officer, "indeed, I think you wereright, Van Deken; the order which the deputies have signedis truly the death-warrant of Master Cornelius. Do you hearthese people? They certainly bear a sad grudge to the two DeWitts.""In truth," replied the officer, "I never heard suchshouts.""They seem to have found out the cell of the man. Look,look! is not that the window of the cell where Cornelius waslocked up?"A man had seized with both hands and was shaking the ironbars of the window in the room which Cornelius had left onlyten minutes before.
Halloa, halloa!" the man called out, "he is gone.""How is that? gone?" asked those of the mob who had not beenable to get into the prison, crowded as it was with the massof intruders.
Gone, gone," repeated the man in a rage, "the bird hasflown.""What does this man say?" asked his Highness, growing quitepale.
Oh, Monseigneur, he says a thing which would be veryfortunate if it should turn out true!""Certainly it would be fortunate if it were true," said theyoung man; "unfortunately it cannot be true.""However, look!" said the officer.
And indeed, some more faces, furious and contorted withrage, showed themselves at the windows, crying, --"Escaped, gone, they have helped them off!"And the people in the street repeated, with fearfulimprecations, --"Escaped gone! After them, and catch them!""Monseigneur, it seems that Mynheer Cornelius has reallyescaped," said the officer.
Yes, from prison, perhaps, but not from the town; you willsee, Van Deken, that the poor fellow will find the gateclosed against him which he hoped to find open.""Has an order been given to close the town gates,Monseigneur?""No, -- at least I do not think so; who could have givensuch an order?""Indeed, but what makes your Highness suppose?""There are fatalities," Monseigneur replied, in an offhandmanner; "and the greatest men have sometimes fallen victimsto such fatalities."At these words the officer felt his blood run cold, assomehow or other he was convinced that the prisoner waslost.
At this moment the roar of the multitude broke forth likethunder, for it was now quite certain that Cornelius de Wittwas no longer in the prison.
Cornelius and John, after driving along the pond, had takenthe main street, which leads to the Tol-Hek, givingdirections to the coachman to slacken his pace, in order notto excite any suspicion.
But when, on having proceeded half-way down that street, theman felt that he had left the prison and death behind, andbefore him there was life and liberty, he neglected everyprecaution, and set his horses off at a gallop.
All at once he stopped.
What is the matter?" asked John, putting his head out ofthe coach window.
Oh, my masters!" cried the coachman, "it is ---- "Terror choked the voice of the honest fellow.
Well, say what you have to say!" urged the GrandPensionary.
The gate is closed, that's what it is.""How is this? It is not usual to close the gate by day.""Just look!"John de Witt leaned out of the window, and indeed saw thatthe man was right.
Never mind, but drive on," said John, "I have with me theorder for the commutation of the punishment, the gate-keeperwill let us through."The carriage moved along, but it was evident that the driverwas no longer urging his horses with the same degree ofconfidence.
Moreover, as John de Witt put his head out of the carriagewindow, he was seen and recognized by a brewer, who, beingbehind his companions, was just shutting his door in allhaste to join them at the Buytenhof. He uttered a cry ofsurprise, and ran after two other men before him, whom heovertook about a hundred yards farther on, and told themwhat he had seen. The three men then stopped, looking afterthe carriage, being however not yet quite sure as to whom itcontained.
The carriage in the meanwhile arrived at the Tol-Hek.
Open!" cried the coachman.
Open!" echoed the gatekeeper, from the threshold of hislodge; "it's all very well to say 'Open!' but what am I todo it with?""With the key, to be sure!" said the coachman.
With the key! Oh, yes! but if you have not got it?""How is that? Have not you got the key?" asked the coachman.
No, I haven't.""What has become of it?""Well, they have taken it from me.""Who?""Some one, I dare say, who had a mind that no one shouldleave the town.""My good man," said the Grand Pensionary, putting out hishead from the window, and risking all for gaining all; "mygood man, it is for me, John de Witt, and for my brotherCornelius, who I am taking away into exile.""Oh, Mynheer de Witt! I am indeed very much grieved," saidthe gatekeeper, rushing towards the carriage; "but, upon mysacred word, the key has been taken from me.""When?""This morning.""By whom?""By a pale and thin young man, of about twenty-two.""And wherefore did you give it up to him?""Because he showed me an order, signed and sealed.""By whom?""By the gentlemen of the Town-hall.""Well, then," said Cornelius calmly, "our doom seems to befixed.""Do you know whether the same precaution has been taken atthe other gates?""I do not.""Now then," said John to the coachman, "God commands man todo all that is in his power to preserve his life; go, anddrive to another gate."And whilst the servant was turning round the vehicle theGrand Pensionary said to the gatekeeper, --"Take our thanks for your good intentions; the will mustcount for the deed; you had the will to save us, and that,in the eyes of the Lord, is as if you had succeeded in doingso.""Alas!" said the gatekeeper, "do you see down there?""Drive at a gallop through that group," John called out tothe coachman, "and take the street on the left; it is ouronly chance."The group which John alluded to had, for its nucleus, thosethree men whom we left looking after the carriage, and who,in the meanwhile, had been joined by seven or eight others.
These new-comers evidently meant mischief with regard to thecarriage.
When they saw the horses galloping down upon them, theyplaced themselves across the street, brandishing cudgels intheir hands, and calling out, --"Stop! stop!"The coachman, on his side, lashed his horses into increasedspeed, until the coach and the men encountered.
The brothers De Witt, enclosed within the body of thecarriage, were not able to see anything; but they felt asevere shock, occasioned by the rearing of the horses. Thewhole vehicle for a moment shook and stopped; butimmediately after, passing over something round and elastic,which seemed to be the body of a prostrate man set off againamidst a volley of the fiercest oaths.
Alas!" said Cornelius, "I am afraid we have hurt some one.""Gallop! gallop!" called John.
But, notwithstanding this order, the coachman suddenly cameto a stop.
Now, then, what is the matter again?" asked John.
Look there!" said the coachman.
John looked. The whole mass of the populace from theBuytenhof appeared at the extremity of the street alongwhich the carriage was to proceed, and its stream movedroaring and rapid, as if lashed on by a hurricane.
Stop and get off," said John to the coachman; "it isuseless to go any farther; we are lost!""Here they are! here they are!" five hundred voices werecrying at the same time.
Yes, here they are, the traitors, the murderers, theassassins!" answered the men who were running after thecarriage to the people who were coming to meet it. Theformer carried in their arms the bruised body of one oftheir companions, who, trying to seize the reins of thehorses, had been trodden down by them.
This was the object over which the two brothers had felttheir carriage pass.
The coachman stopped, but, however strongly his master urgedhim, he refused to get off and save himself.
In an instant the carriage was hemmed in between those whofollowed and those who met it. It rose above the mass ofmoving heads like a floating island. But in another instantit came to a dead stop. A blacksmith had with his hammerstruck down one of the horses, which fell in the traces.
At this moment, the shutter of a window opened, anddisclosed the sallow face and the dark eyes of the youngman, who with intense interest watched the scene which waspreparing. Behind him appeared the head of the officer,almost as pale as himself.
Good heavens, Monseigneur, what is going on there?"whispered the officer.
Something very terrible, to a certainty," replied theother.
Don't you see, Monseigneur, they are dragging the GrandPensionary from the carriage, they strike him, they tear himto pieces!""Indeed, these people must certainly be prompted by a mostviolent indignation," said the young marl, with the sameimpassible tone which he had preserved all along.
And here is Cornelius, whom they now likewise drag out ofthe carriage, -- Cornelius, who is already quite broken andmangled by the torture. Only look, look!""Indeed, it is Cornelius, and no mistake."The officer uttered a feeble cry, and turned his head away;the brother of the Grand Pensionary, before having set footon the ground, whilst still on the bottom step of thecarriage, was struck down with an iron bar which broke hisskull. He rose once more, but immediately fell again.
Some fellows then seized him by the feet, and dragged himinto the crowd, into the middle of which one might havefollowed his bloody track, and he was soon closed in amongthe savage yells of malignant exultation.
The young man -- a thing which would have been thoughtimpossible -- grew even paler than before, and his eyes werefor a moment veiled behind the lids.
The officer saw this sign of compassion, and, wishing toavail himself of this softened tone of his feelings,continued, --"Come, come, Monseigneur, for here they are also going tomurder the Grand Pensionary."But the young man had already opened his eyes again.
To be sure," he said. "These people are really implacable.
It does no one good to offend them.""Monseigneur," said the officer, "may not one save this poorman, who has been your Highness's instructor? If there beany means, name it, and if I should perish in the attempt---- "William of Orange -- for he it was -- knit his brows in avery forbidding manner, restrained the glance of gloomymalice which glistened in his half-closed eye, and answered,--"Captain Van Deken, I request you to go and look after mytroops, that they may be armed for any emergency.""But am I to leave your Highness here, alone, in thepresence of all these murderers?""Go, and don't you trouble yourself about me more than I domyself," the Prince gruffly replied.
The officer started off with a speed which was much lessowing to his sense of military obedience than to hispleasure at being relieved from the necessity of witnessingthe shocking spectacle of the murder of the other brother.
He had scarcely left the room, when John -- who, with analmost superhuman effort, had reached the stone steps of ahouse nearly opposite that where his former pupil concealedhimself -- began to stagger under the blows which wereinflicted on him from all sides, calling out, --"My brother! where is my brother?"One of the ruffians knocked off his hat with a blow of hisclenched fist.
Another showed to him his bloody hands; for this fellow hadripped open Cornelius and disembowelled him, and was nowhastening to the spot in order not to lose the opportunityof serving the Grand Pensionary in the same manner, whilstthey were dragging the dead body of Cornelius to the gibbet.
John uttered a cry of agony and grief, and put one of hishands before his eyes.
Oh, you close your eyes, do you?" said one of the soldiersof the burgher guard; "well, I shall open them for you."And saying this he stabbed him with his pike in the face,and the blood spurted forth.
My brother!" cried John de Witt, trying to see through thestream of blood which blinded him, what had become ofCornelius; "my brother, my brother!""Go and run after him!" bellowed another murderer, puttinghis musket to his temples and pulling the trigger.
But the gun did not go off.
The fellow then turned his musket round, and, taking it bythe barrel with both hands, struck John de Witt down withthe butt-end. John staggered and fell down at his feet, but,raising himself with a last effort, he once more called out,--"My brother!" with a voice so full of anguish that the youngman opposite closed the shutter.
There remained little more to see; a third murderer fired apistol with the muzzle to his face; and this time the shottook effect, blowing out his brains. John de Witt fell torise no more.
On this, every one of the miscreants, emboldened by hisfall, wanted to fire his gun at him, or strike him withblows of the sledge-hammer, or stab him with a knife orswords, every one wanted to draw a drop of blood from thefallen hero, and tear off a shred from his garments.
And after having mangled, and torn, and completely strippedthe two brothers, the mob dragged their naked and bloodybodies to an extemporised gibbet, where amateur executionershung them up by the feet.
Then came the most dastardly scoundrels of all, who nothaving dared to strike the living flesh, cut the dead inpieces, and then went about the town selling small slices ofthe bodies of John and Cornelius at ten sous a piece.
We cannot take upon ourselves to say whether, through thealmost imperceptible chink of the shutter, the young manwitnessed the conclusion of this shocking scene; but at thevery moment when they were hanging the two martyrs on thegibbet he passed through the terrible mob, which was toomuch absorbed in the task, so grateful to its taste, to takeany notice of him, and thus he reached unobserved theTol-Hek, which was still closed.
Ah! sir," said the gatekeeper, "do you bring me the key?""Yes, my man, here it is.""It is most unfortunate that you did not bring me that keyonly one quarter of an hour sooner," said the gatekeeper,with a sigh.
And why that?" asked the other.
Because I might have opened the gate to Mynheers de Witt;whereas, finding the gate locked, they were obliged toretrace their steps.""Gate! gate!" cried a voice which seemed to be that of a manin a hurry.
The Prince, turning round, observed Captain Van Deken.
Is that you, Captain?" he said. "You are not yet out of theHague? This is executing my orders very slowly.""Monseigneur," replied the Captain, "this is the third gateat which I have presented myself; the other two wereclosed.""Well, this good man will open this one for you; do it, myfriend."The last words were addressed to the gatekeeper, who stoodquite thunderstruck on hearing Captain Van Deken addressingby the title of Monseigneur this pale young man, to whom hehimself had spoken in such a familiar way.
As it were to make up for his fault, he hastened to open thegate, which swung creaking on its hinges.
Will Monseigneur avail himself of my horse?" asked theCaptain.
I thank you, Captain, I shall use my own steed, which iswaiting for me close at hand."And taking from his pocket a golden whistle, such as wasgenerally used at that time for summoning the servants, hesounded it with a shrill and prolonged call, on which anequerry on horseback speedily made his appearance, leadinganother horse by the bridle.
William, without touching the stirrup, vaulted into thesaddle of the led horse, and, setting his spurs into itsflanks, started off for the Leyden road. Having reached it,he turned round and beckoned to the Captain who was farbehind, to ride by his side.
Do you know," he then said, without stopping, "that thoserascals have killed John de Witt as well as his brother?""Alas! Monseigneur," the Captain answered sadly, "I shouldlike it much better if these two difficulties were still inyour Highness's way of becoming de facto Stadtholder ofHolland.""Certainly, it would have been better," said William, "ifwhat did happen had not happened. But it cannot be helpednow, and we have had nothing to do with it. Let us push on,Captain, that we may arrive at Alphen before the messagewhich the States-General are sure to send to me to thecamp."The Captain bowed, allowed the Prince to ride ahead and, forthe remainder of the journey, kept at the same respectfuldistance as he had done before his Highness called him tohis side.
How I should wish," William of Orange malignantly mutteredto himself, with a dark frown and setting the spurs to hishorse, "to see the figure which Louis will cut when he isapprised of the manner in which his dear friends De Witthave been served! Oh thou Sun! thou Sun! as truly as I amcalled William the Silent, thou Sun, thou hadst best look tothy rays!"And the young Prince, the relentless rival of the GreatKing, sped away upon his fiery steed, -- this futureStadtholder who had been but the day before very uncertainlyestablished in his new power, but for whom the burghers ofthe Hague had built a staircase with the bodies of John andCornelius, two princes as noble as he in the eyes of God and man.